Game Of Thrones Preview: Season 2, Episode 9 - Blackwater

It's hard to believe there are just two episodes left of Season 2 of Game of Thrones. Things are certainly heating up on the series as the finale looms closer. HBO released some new teasers for the ninth episode of the season ("Blackwater"), all of which hint at an epic battle on the horizon.

Joffrey may be good at throwing monster-sized tantrums, but how is he when it comes to battle scenarios? We may find out soon enough. All of the promos HBO has released for "Blackwater" (an episode written by George R.R. Martin himself!) hint of the battle we know the show has been building up toward all season. Stannis Baratheon is on the way and as Tyrion notes, "If the city falls, Stannis will burn every Lannister he can find." He's probably not wrong about that…

This "War of Kings" trailer runs for a bit longer and focuses on a slightly wider view of the picture, with five kings vying for the throne. Stannis isn't the only one who's on the way and ready for battle. Lord Tywin has his sights set on Robb Stark..

Finally, this is the post-episode preview for "Blackwater," which includes some of the footage in the other trailers, along with a few other bits, like Cersei stating that Stannis may take the thrones but he won't take them alive. Like his sister, Tyrion seems equally determined to fight as he rallies the troops…

Those are brave men knocking at our door. Let's go kill them!

With all this focus on battle, what about the other Starks? We have Arya who's poised for an escape, Jon Snow who's being held captive by the wildlings, and Bran and Rickon, who, as it turns out, weren't killed and burned as it was implied at the end of last week's episode. They're down in the crypts hiding out. Not the coziest place, but it's a familiar one and they're close to home, so that's something, right? It should be interesting to see where their stories go as the season wraps up. And in non-Stark news, will Daenerys get her dragons back anytime soon?